Running to the Edge of the World
by Carovinee
Summary: He runs into her on the White Cliffs of Dover, as she is seconds away from ending her life. But can the Doctor, troubled by the loss of his Rose, help heal the broken mind of Cynthia? And can Cynthia help the Doctor deal with the depth of his grief?
1. Tryst

**A**/**N**: A wild Doctor Who fanfic appears!

This story is set in between "The Runaway Bride" and "Smith and Jones". I'm going to try to explain the Doctor's presence at the hospital (aside from looking for the Plasmavore), and introduce a new OC at the same time. Woot.

Rated M for language and some dark-ish themes.

Reviews are loved and appreciated.

And yes, I named it after a Marilyn Manson song. Don't hate.

Running to the Edge of the World: Chapter One

Tryst

"_Doctor? That friend of yours? What was her name?"_

"_Her name was Rose..."_

Reminders! Constant reminders, everywhere he went! What he needed was a distraction. A walk through a park, an alien race to save, a new flavour of ice cream to try, something, anything! Donna's last words had been difficult to hear, and had literally destroyed walls of mental defence against the memories of Rose.

The Doctor sighed, reaching forward one long, slender arm to pull a random lever on the console of his TARDIS.

"Hmm, perhaps a quick visit to the White Cliffs of Dover! Why not?" he said, grinning. His head swivelled around, as if to confirm his choice with an invisible passenger.

Moments later, the TARDIS fell silent, and the Doctor pushed the blue door open, revealing the wide-open, windy space of the cliffs. The sun was just setting, leaving the cliffs empty and quite peaceful.

Suddenly, a silhouette appeared against the setting sun. A lone figure was walking towards the edge of the cliff. It stood, staring over the edge for a few minutes. The shadow was bulky, and looked to be wearing a backpack.

"_A hiker, maybe? Or a homeless person?"_

The figure stretched out its arms, leaning slightly over the edge, and suddenly the Doctor knew that there was something very, very wrong.

0o0o0

"Cynthia May Allen, you useless child! First the failed classes, then the scratched arms, now the police! What have I raised? A common miscreant, or a respectable human being?"

Cindy sighed, opening the door to her bedroom.

"Mum, it was just a quick smoke between classes! I don't know why the police would throw a fit over one silly fag. I won't do it again, okay?" she shouted, walking back to her desk to continue her writing.

"No, it is not okay!" screeched Janice, her mother. The short, frizzy-haired woman stormed into the room, her face pink and her arms crossed. "You're so irresponsible, I can't even trust you anymore! I was going to go out tonight, but I don't think I will. Ever since your father left, you've been a silly, disobedient wreck! Not a day goes by without something bad happening around you. I'm sick of this! Tomorrow I'm taking you to see Ms. Della!"

"No, Mum! Not your stupid psychiatrist. I hate her, and she hates me!" said Cindy, leaving her seat.

Madge raised one arm, sending a sharp slap across her daughter's cheek. Cindy fell down to her knees, avoiding her mother's eye.

"We'll go tomorrow! Understood?" said her mother, glaring down at her daughter.

"Ugh, fine. Yes, Mum, we'll go tomorrow." whispered Cindy.

Janice left the room, stomping back down to the kitchen. As soon as she could, Cindy slammed her door shut and leaned over her journal. Her hands reached to pull up her sleeves, revealing criss-crossed scars and bruises. She picked up her pen, continuing to write.

_I really don't know how much longer I can take being here. Mum is so violent, and I'm sick to death of the people at school. They bully me because my Dad left and we haven't got much money. It's not my fault I only have one jumper to wear to school! Mum keeps hitting me and my brother, and I have bruises on my chest and arms from when those boys shoved me down the stairs at school. I can't do this any more, I just can't. I've been thinking about this for a while now, and I know what I have to do. I'll head to the cliffs tonight. I'm sorry, but I cannot stay here any longer._

0o0o0

The Doctor ran, propelling himself towards the shadow in front of him. Just as it started to tip over the edge, he grabbed onto one of the straps on the figure's pack.

"Hey, what the hell?" it shrieked, in an obviously female voice.

He pulled her back, grabbing her shoulders, spinning her around, and looking into her face.

The female before him looked to be about seventeen. Even in the low light he could see how distressed she looked. Her hazel eyes flashed at him, showing her unhappiness towards the man that had probably just saved her life.

"Who the fuck are you, and why did you grab me?" she hissed.

"I saved you from falling over that cliff!" he said, releasing his firm grip on her shoulders. "What where you even doing out here, this late? Standing there like that, you looked like you were looking for trouble! Why would you stand at the edge of a...?" A look of slight shock crossed the Doctor's face as his mind worked through what he had seen.

"You were...you were trying to kill yourself! But why?" he asked, looking right into her eyes.

"Why the hell should I tell you?" she spat, turning away from him. "I don't even know you!"

He grasped her shoulder again, turning her to face him.

"Walk with me, miss...er?"

"Cindy. My name is Cindy." she said, sighing.

The two walked towards the main road. The road was mostly deserted, aside from the odd car here and there, and a nearby bus stop.

"I'll catch a bus back home, and hopefully make it in before my Mum gets home." she explained, motioning towards the small, beat-up bus stop.

"Your mother doesn't know that you're here?" he asked, sitting down on one of the metal benches.

"Of course not!" she said, reaching into her backpack. A few seconds of rummaging around produced a small carton of cigarettes,

"Hey, you don't mind if I smoke, do you?" she asked, digging around for a lighter.

"You really shouldn't." he replied, sternly. "It'll kill you, you know."

"Don't nag me! What are you, some kind of doctor?" she said, laughing as she lit her cigarette.

"I am, actually! I'm the Doctor." he grinned.

"Doctor?" she asked, confused. "Doctor who?"

"Just 'the Doctor', please." he said, rolling his eyes slightly.

"What the hell kind of name is Doctor?" she laughed again, taking a deep pull from her cigarette and exhaling the smoke. A bus pulled up, and she sighed, putting out her cigarette against her leg. She stood, turning to him as she boarded.

"Goodbye...Doctor."

**Another A**/**N**: There, that's done. Forgive my pathetic excuse at trying to use correct British terminology. I'm Canadian, and my knowledge is pretty limited!


	2. Biology

**A**/**N**: Thank you to **Fionn Rose, kakashinightroad, **and **Anonymous309 **for their lovely reviews! Also, I guess I should put a language and content warning on this one. And every other chapter that I write, of course. I'd also like to note that I have dealt with a few of the themes in this story, but this is not a self-insert. I'm just using my own memories and some stories that a few of my friends have shared with me for inspiration.

Running to the Edge of the World: Chapter 2

Biology

It was a week later when Cindy saw this mysterious Doctor again. She'd taken to going back to the cliffside after school, where she would sit and work on homework. After a particularly stressful day of classes, Cindy hopped off the bus and walked over to the White Cliffs. This time, she noticed, she wasn't alone.

A man was standing with his back to her. He was tall, with ruffled brown hair and a blue suit. A long brown trenchcoat fluttered in the slight breeze. She beamed, recognizing the messy hairdo.

"Hello, Doctor!" she called, jogging over to him. He turned around, grinning as he recognized her.

"Ah, Cindy! What are you doing out here?" he asked.

"I like to come out here during the day. I work on homework and relax, you know? It's peaceful out here, even with the wind!" she explained, removing her pack and dropping it to the ground. Sighing slightly, she tugged her binder out of her bag and opened her Science textbook to the correct page. She dropped onto the soft grass and began taking notes on chapter 9 of the textbook.

"As much as I like science, I can't stand this unit! And my teacher is a stupid arsehat. The only things I learn I teach myself!" she complained. The Doctor looked over her shoulder, his eyes quickly scanning the page.

"Biology? Who's biology are you studying?" he asked. She jumped, looking at the man behind her in confusion.

"Human biology, of course! What else could I be studying? You aren't from here, are you?" she asked, smirking slightly. One hand reached to the carton in her pocket and expertly lit a cigarette.

"Have you ever thought that there could be others out there, Cynthia? Others aside from you humans?" he said, his voice lowering almost dramatically.

"What on earth do you mean by that? You high or something? And how the hell do you know my full name?" she demanded, standing up and tossing her textbook aside.

"I saw it in the beginning of the textbook, while you were flipping through it. Cynthia Allen? Lovely name, by the way." he explained, giving her an almost teasing smile.

"What the fuck?" she shrieked, grabbing her stuff and backing away. "There's something wrong with you! Go away, I don't want you near me!" Cindy gathered her things into one arm and shoved them into her pack. She took one last pull from her cigarette and threw the butt onto the ground, lightly stomping it out with the toe of her boot. Shooting the Doctor one last venomous look, she turned and ran towards the bus station. The Doctor stood, surprised at her sudden outburst.

"I'd forgotten how unpredictable these creatures are. Ah, well. Suppose I'd better be off." he said. Just then, he caught sight of a shimmery glint in the dying sunlight. He reached down, picking up the offending object from the grass.

Cynthia's lighter.

OoOoO

"Fuck!" shouted Cindy, fiercely dumping out and pawing through the contents of her backpack. The stresses of the day, mixed with her mother's usual attitude, left Cindy with a couple new bruises, a split lip, and the overpowering urge to smoke. She'd then discovered that her lighter was missing.

_Mother must have gone through my bag again! Wait, I had my bag with me the whole time, she couldn't have. Where the fuck...oh, no! I fucking dropped it on the cliff! It's as good as gone now. Fuck."_

The harsh, jarring slam of the front door jerked Cindy out of her internal monologue. She winced, realizing that her mother was back from a night out drinking. Janice stomped right up to Cindy's room, throwing the door open. Her round face was flushed a deep pink, and a look of pure anger rested there.

"So I was on my way home..." she slurred, propping herself up against the doorframe. "I had a quick word with Jenna, and she said that she saw you at the bus stop. What the hell were you doing there?"

_Shit._

" I, uh, popped over to the shop on my way home." she lied. "I wanted some food. There's never any food around here."

"Lies!" hissed her mother. "There's a store just around the corner! Why would you waste money on a bus fare?" The drunken woman stumbled into the room, standing almost menacingly over Cindy.

"I am sick to death of you and your mistakes! Everything about you is a mistake, even you are a mistake!"

**Slap.**

"I want you out of this house, now!"

**Slap.**

"You're so irresponsible, so clueless, so stupid, and so desperate for attention! Why are you even alive?"

**Smash.**

Cindy lay on the floor of her room, her head resting against the corner of her bedpost. She lay silently as her mother continued her rant, waiting for the moment she got tired and went to pass out on the couch. When Janice finally left, Cindy sat up, clutching her head. A sticky red substance poured from a gash on her forehead, and her whole body ached and throbbed with each beat of her heart.

Moving on autopilot, Cindy stalked through her room, gathering together clothes, money, her journal, and other random items. She sighed, downing a few Tylenols and slipping past her comatose mother, and out the front door.

OoOoO

The Doctor sat stretched out in front of the TARDIS console, his hands flying across the multiple panels, levers, buttons, and screens. Bored, he'd decided to hover through the first bit of the 1800s, just for a laugh. He stared at the world of time swirling around the outside of his TARDIS, grinning occasionally as he came across faces he recognized. He stood, pushing a couple of colourful buttons. He didn't really have a destination in mind, he just wanted to see what would happen.

A sudden, faint flickering spread through himself and the TARDIS, and he found himself reaching into his pocket. An unfamiliar metal object met his touch, and he removed his hand, curious.

_Cynthia's lighter! I should return this, sometime._

The Doctor pulled two levers, typed a date onto a touch screen, and carefully pressed a series of buttons. When the TARDIS materialized, he threw on his trenchcoat, a smile on his face and he envisioned himself handing the lighter back to the strange (and seemingly bipolar) girl.

The smile quickly faded as he opened the door, revealing a bruised, bleeding, and unconscious Cynthia, collapsed on the ground just a few steps away from the door to his TARDIS.

**A**/**N**: Review?


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